Manifest was saved by its massive Netflix viewership, not the #SaveManifest campaign

The Hollywood Reporter

The streamer says 25 million accounts in the United States and Canada watched Manifest in its first 28 days of availability. Manifest also stuck around Netflix's Top 10 for 71 days. Netflix says it was the numbers behind the scenes, not the fan campaign, that ultimately led to Manifest's renewal for a fourth and final season. “Fan enthusiasm is always great to see, but it really isn’t the emails or tweets — it was all about the viewing,” says Netflix head of global TV Bela Bajaria. “To save a show in this way, it has to have that fan viewing. I appreciate their passion and being connected to the characters, but the viewing is the thing that saved the show.” Meanwhile, Manifest creator Jeff Rake says he pitched Netflix three different options to wrap up the show: A two-hour movie, a six-episode limited series or full season. “I gave them the small, the medium and the large,” says Rake. Netflix, of course, ordered a 20-episode final season. Manifest is expected to get a bigger budget for its final season. “It will be an increased budget,” Bajaria says. “We want them to have a good budget that feels creatively fulfilling, but it’s not finalized yet.” Rake adds: “Netflix said they want us to continue making the show we’ve been making and if they can help with some extra bells and whistles to make it more compelling and spectacular, they want to be able to support that. But I think that it will still feel like the show people have fallen in love with. It’s going to be an incredibly visual 20 episodes and there’s some important (location filming) that’s always been built into the roadmap.”